Baltimore Sun media critic David Zurawik appeared on Thursday’s CNN Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin and continued to hold little back in criticizing NBC News managing editor and NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams for having falsely claimed his helicopter was shot down in March 2003 over Iraq.
While also speaking with CNN’s Brian Stelter, Zurawik minced no words in describing what Williams did as lying and something that is grounds for his dismissal from his positions at NBC after having insulted the “millions of military families in this country who suffer everyday diminished lives by the injuries and the wounds that people who fought honorably in those wars suffered.”
Zurawik then explained how Williams, while playing the role of “anchorman,” came along and “trie[d] to appropriate some of their honor for himself by that lie” even though he “didn’t do it” by serving our country by fighting in combat.
“Even if all he did was lie, I don't think he should be the face of that news division any longer,” Zurawik said.
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The long-time media critic also had a few words for the news industry to go along with the Williams situation that were far from that of a ringing endorsement:
[W]e have this thing in the media oh, we're all part of this fraternity. That's why the public hates us, because we won't call each other out. This is a terrible thing that Williams did. I don't know why he did it....I just know we should have a higher standard for the people who lead news divisions – he has one of the most honored jobs in this country as managing editor of a network news division. We can do better than people who say I don't know what got screwed up in my brain to say this.
When host Brooke Baldwin asked if it made a difference to him that the pilot of Williams helicopter said Thursday that their aircraft did take small-arms fire but not an RPG, Zurawik answered that it didn’t:
No, because he said he took – first of all, he said he took a very specific kind of fire and in almost every version he makes it sound as if he was in that first helicopter that got hit and the versions we have is that he showed up an hour later, for goodness sakes. I mean – you know, people online and people in e-mails to me today and various things have said look, if you were in a chopper that took that kind of fire, I don't care if it was 50 years ago, you wouldn't forget it. You wouldn't get confused about it.
Later, Zurawik ended the segment by urging everyone to not refer to what Williams did as a “mistake” but “a lie and we should call it as such” and predicting that “we’re going to find out” soon if NBC is “more concerned with having the number one rated anchor on television or are they concerned about credibility.”
The relevant portions of the transcript from CNN Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin on February 5 are transcribed below.
CNN Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin
February 5, 2015
3:48 p.m. Eastern
BROOKE BALDWIN: David, to you. You wrote in The Sun: “If credibility means anything to NBC News, Brian Williams will no longer be managing editor and anchor of the evening newscast by the end of the day Friday.” Do you still feel that way?
DAVID ZURAWIK: I do. Absolutely and I'll tell you why, Brooke. You know, this isn’t just as he said, he misremembered something from 12 years ago. He also used the language of conflating one event with another. This is a story that he's told over those 12 years in differing version versions, but in all of them, he was in danger and took fire – and here’s – it’s not just that he lied for 12 years, it's the kind of lie he told. There are millions of military families in this country who suffer everyday diminished lives by the injuries and the wounds that people who fought honorably in those wars suffered. Along comes an anchorman who didn't do it who tries to appropriate some of their honor for himself by that lie. You tell me how any member of any military family in this country can look at him on TV and not feel contempt for him. That's why I think it's going to be very hard for him to continue and look, managing editor and anchor, he is the face of their news division. Even if all he did was lie, I don't think he should be the face of that news division any longer. I'm sorry and I think you know, we have this thing in the media oh, we're all part of this fraternity. That's why the public hates us, because we won't call each other out. This is a terrible thing that Williams did. I don't know why he did it. I don't know how he did it, Brooke. I'm not trying to psychoanalyze him. I just know we should have a higher standard for the people who lead news divisions – he has one of the most honored jobs in this country as managing editor of a network news division. We can do better than people who say I don't know what got screwed up in my brain to say this.
BALDWIN: David, would it matter to you – I’m mean, I'm listening to everything you're saying, would it matter to you if his Chinook did take arms fire, just a smaller arms fire?
ZURAWIK: No, because he said he took – first of all, he said he took a very specific kind of fire and in almost every version he makes it sound as if he was in that first helicopter that got hit and the versions we have is that he showed up an hour later, for goodness sakes. I mean – you know, people online and people in e-mails to me today and various things have said look, if you were in a chopper that took that kind of fire, I don't care if it was 50 years ago, you wouldn't forget it. You wouldn't get confused about it.
(....)
3:53 p.m. Eastern
ZURAWIK: One of the things, that's a great point you raise because NBC itself, in various press venues, publicity venues, has told versions of this story. So, they’re kind of complicit in it and that's going to be a problem for them, too, to take any kind of action against him. We’re going find out: are they more concerned with having the number one rated anchor on television or are they concerned about credibility? You can have both, but I don't think you can have both once your anchorman makes this kind of – and I almost said mistake, but I'm not going to give him the credit, benefit of the doubt and say mistake. This is a lie and we should call it as such.
